Book 4 · Chapter 1

It was getting late, and there was still enough night left for them to cross the valley without being seen. When the order came, they got up and started marching, reaching the mountains just as it was daylight.

At this point, Cheirisophus, leading his own group and all the quick-moving soldiers, was out front.

Xenophon followed behind with the strong infantry in the rear, but they didn’t have any quick-moving soldiers because it didn't seem like anyone was going to chase or attack them from behind while they climbed the hill. Cheirisophus reached the top without the enemy noticing him.

Then he moved slowly, and the rest of the army followed, one after another, reaching the top and heading down into the villages nestled in the hills. The Carduchians left their homes and ran to the mountains with their wives and kids.

This meant there was plenty of food just lying around for the taking, and the houses were full of bronze pots and tools that the Greeks didn’t touch. They didn’t chase the Carduchians either, treating them gently, hoping they’d let the Greeks pass through their country peacefully.

After all, the Carduchians were enemies of the king too. But the Greeks did help themselves to whatever food they could find - they really needed to. The Carduchians, though, didn't respond when they called out or show any friendly gestures.

As the last of the Greeks made it down into the villages from the pass, it was already dark because the road was so narrow that they'd spent the whole day climbing up and down.

Suddenly, a group of Carduchians, who had gathered, attacked the soldiers bringing up the rear, throwing stones and shooting arrows - though it was just a small group. The truth was, the arrival of the Greek army had caught them off guard.

If they'd had more people, a lot of the Greek army might have been wiped out. Instead, they found a place to stay and camped in the villages that night, while the Carduchians kept many fires burning in a circle on the mountains, keeping an eye on each other.

But with the sun coming up, the Greek generals and officers met and decided to move on, taking only the strongest pack animals and leaving the weaker ones behind. They also decided to let go of all the slaves they'd recently captured.

The pace of the march had been slowed down by the number of animals and prisoners, and there were so many non-fighting people taking care of them that they needed twice as much food. After they made these decisions, they had a herald announce them to everyone.

After breakfast, the march started again, and the generals found a spot to set up a little to the side. Whenever they spotted any of the enslaved people or other belongings still around, they just took them.

The soldiers mostly followed orders, except when some shady dealer, hoping to snag a good-looking boy or girl, managed to get away with his prize. They got through the day, a mix of fighting and resting.

But the next day, they were hit by a huge storm, and they still had to keep moving because they were running low on food. Cheirisophus was leading the way as usual, while Xenophon covered the rear when the enemy launched a serious attack.

At one narrow spot after another, they closed in, firing arrows and slingstones, forcing the Greeks to charge forward and then retreat, barely making any progress. Over and over, Xenophon told Cheirisophus to slow down when the enemy was really pressing them.

Usually, Cheirisophus would ease up, but sometimes he’s like, "Nah," and would speed up, sending a message back to the rear to catch up. Something was definitely up, but there was no time to go to the front and figure it out.

Things in the rear started to feel like a chaotic retreat, and some brave guys lost their lives - Cleonymus from Laconia got shot through the ribs with an arrow, right through his shield and armor, and Basias, an Arcadian, was shot clean through the head.

As soon as they reached a stopping point, Xenophon went straight to Cheirisophus and called him out for not waiting. Because you didn't wait, he said, we were fighting and running at the same time. And now it’s cost us the lives of two good guys.

They’re gone, and we couldn’t even pick up their bodies or bury them." Cheirisophus pointed up at the mountain. "Look up there," he said, "do you see how impossible it is to get up there?

"Just this one road, which you can see, going straight up, and all that crowd of people who have taken over and are guarding the only way out. That's why I pushed ahead, and why I couldn't wait for you, hoping to get to the pass first. The guides we have say there's no other way."

Xenophon replied, "But I’ve got two prisoners, too. The enemy was really annoying us, so we set a trap, which also gave us a chance to catch our breath. We killed some of them and did our best to grab a couple alive - for this very reason - so we could get guides who knew the area to rely on."

The two were brought forward and questioned separately: "Do you know of any other way than the one we see?" The first guy said no, and even after they tried everything to scare him into giving a better answer, he kept saying "no."

When they couldn't get anything more out of him, they killed him right in front of his friends. Then the second guy explained, "That guy didn’t know anything because his daughter is married to someone who lives around there. I can take you," he added, "by a good road, even for animals."

When asked if there was any tough spot on the road, he replied that there was a pass that would be impossible to get through unless it was already secured.

So, they decided to call in the light infantry guys and a few of the heavy hitters. They wanted to fill them in on what was going on and see if anyone was down to make a name for themselves on a mission.

Two or three heavy infantry soldiers immediately stepped up - two Arcadians, Aristonymus from Methydrium, and Agasias from Stymphalus - and a third, also an Arcadian, Callimachus from Parrhasia, joined them. I’m in, he said. And I’m gonna get volunteers from the whole army to join me.

"Don't worry, there’s no shortage of young bucks who’ll follow where I go." Then they asked, "Anyone from the light infantry wanna come along?" Aristeas, a guy from Chios who’s proven himself useful to the army before, volunteered.